Convicted sex abuser allegedly plotted in jail to kill juvenile victim and her family before his trial

SARASOTA, Fla. (TCN) -- A man currently serving time in an Oregon prison for sexually abusing a young girl is facing charges in Florida for allegedly plotting while behind bars to kill the victim and her family to make the charges against him disappear.

In November 2023, a Multnomah County jury convicted Leland Harper of multiple crimes, including 23 counts of first-degree sexual abuse, 16 counts of using a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct, 14 counts of luring a minor, three counts of unlawful sexual penetration, two counts of first-degree sodomy, one count of encouraging sexual abuse, six counts of witness tampering, four counts of bribing a witness, two counts of conspiracy to bribe a witness, and two counts of conspiracy to commit witness tampering. A judge sentenced him in January to 25 years in prison, according to KOIN-TV.

Court records show that on April 11, officials in Sarasota County, Florida, charged Harper with four counts of solicitation to commit homicide. According to a probable cause affidavit, investigators looking into his Oregon case learned he allegedly committed child sexual abuse in Florida. A Sarasota County detective began investigating in 2023, and in February 2025, the detective learned about an alleged "potential threat to do harm" against the victim’s family.

Harper is reportedly appealing his case in Oregon while also facing a civil lawsuit from the victim’s family. An informant allegedly told their attorney that Harper asked if they could help him locate someone to kill the family in exchange for money, and it needed to be done before he went to trial in Sarasota. Harper allegedly wrote a letter explaining that killing the victim and her family would "help with the appeal on his case in Oregon and stop the civil lawsuit."

He reportedly said he would pay $30,000 for the hit. According to the affidavit, Harper allegedly "described that he wanted it to look like a murder-suicide at the hand of the father/husband” and that emails would be sent from the father’s phone admitting that he sexually abused his daughter and set Harper up.

"Surreptitious audio recordings" allegedly caught Harper telling the informant, "No face, no case. If there are no witnesses, there is no trial."

He also reportedly said, "Ending that genetic legacy is doing the world a f--king favor."

The informant reportedly asked if the killings "would bother him," and Harper allegedly replied, "Nope. No, I know my mind. That’s how I am. Stone-cold sociopath. That’s what I am."

He allegedly hoped the family would feel a "mountain of terror" prior to their killings, which he planned for May.

Investigators set up a bank account, and Harper’s wife allegedly wired $29,998.97 to it. Harper, however, did not ask for confirmation if the family was killed.

Harper is facing nine counts of sexual abuse in Sarasota County.

Jail records show Harper was extradited from Oregon to the Sarasota County Jail, where he is being held without bond.

The lead Multnomah County prosecutor in the case, Chuck Mickley, told KOIN, "He’s made efforts all throughout the process to try to avoid the consequences of his criminal actions. And so this isn’t necessarily surprising that he is going through a lot of additional steps to try to get out from the trouble that he’s caused himself by committing these crimes."

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